


the water had caught fire

by slowdanciing



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Albino Dave Strider, Alternate Universe - Dragons, Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Bickering, Bro Sucks, Dragon Karkat, Gen, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Magic, Shapeshifter Karkat, Slow Burn, Witch Rose Lalonde, also dave tries to act tough but he aint, i portray dave as kinda stupid but HE AINT I SWEAR, slow burn will be as slow as i can handle before i lose my mind, who doesnt love a lil bit of magic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-09-22 14:20:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17061380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slowdanciing/pseuds/slowdanciing
Summary: maybe… just maybe… if you gained the courage to find or even slay this dragon, you could find a way out of these training sessions and work alongside your brother. he wouldn’t detest being near you. maybe…you shut your eyes tight and wipe at the salty tears falling down your cheek. they leaked into your cut and made it sting, which made your eyes water even more, but you couldn’t cry. striders didn’t cry.even if you were only 7 at the time, you planned on finding this stupid dragon, even if it killed you.





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Stories We tell Ourselves](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12285999) by [ohmyvantas](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohmyvantas/pseuds/ohmyvantas). 



     you ripped your sword out of the ground and panted heavily, watching the bloodied sweat drip off of your cheek and onto the grassy lawn of your home. 

     you needed to leave. 

 

      okay, okay, okay. let’s back up some here. your name is dave strider. right now would usually be the time that you share your interests and what not with whatever force may be listening, but you don’t have the time for that now. you are fairly used to training with your bro, but it was getting a little out of hand here. 

      as you bled out on the mossy grass, you sat down and pressed your foot up to the door in some weak attempt to keep your brother away. if you were lucky, he wouldn’t bare his face again since the sun was rising and he had work to do. you were too much of a pussy to tell anyone how bad these training sessions were, but you would need the skills he taught you to become a skilled bladesmith, or maybe even go find this dragon your brother had spoken of so many times. you trusted bro in what he said and knew that they would come in handy some day.

      maybe… just maybe… if you gained the courage to find or even  _ slay _ this dragon, you could find a way out of these training sessions and work alongside your brother. he wouldn’t detest being near you. maybe…

      you shut your eyes tight and wipe at the salty tears falling down your cheek. they leaked into your cut and made it sting, which made your eyes water even more, but you couldn’t cry. striders didn’t cry. 

      even if you were only 7 at the time, you planned on finding this stupid dragon, even if it killed you.

 


	2. plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hate this chapter,,, it always looks better in docs

     as already aforementioned, your name is dave strider.

  
     you would stop and talk, but you really didn’t have time if you actually wanted to get some work done.

  
     you slam your hammer down onto the blade of your sword, sparking the hot metal against your beaten up anvil. you hated this job a lot, but it was what was keeping you alive.

  
     as you continued to work on the sword, you decided to think of a little recap that happened over the last 10 years of your life; literally nothing. you had gotten through grade school and dropped out to help broderick out in the shop. you have kept in touch with none of your friends except rose lalonde, a potion maker, and john egbert, some sort of baker. you have now been out of grade school for three years and have been working non-stop every day on these half-assed swords. you’re tired of the noise of metal against metal, the three hours of sleep every day, and the scars that come with every little rooftop strife.

  
     there was only one thing that you had held onto since your childhood; not your hope broderick would stop “training you” (that would never happen) and not your dream that you could become some sort of artist (you were told that you weren’t allowed to be an artist; it was too un-strider-like, whatever that means); you wanted to find that dragon broderick never shut up about, whenever he spoke, he was either disciplining you or telling you about how one day, you should be able to fight this mighty dragon with your bare hands and win.

  
     it wasn’t just to impress broderick anymore; you felt like you were obligated to go find this dragon, or maybe even defeat it depending on the time of day. maybe it was even to impress yourself or to gain some sort of self-confidence that you weren’t a complete fuck-up (yes, edgy, you know. after being told it so many times, you cant help but believe it must be true).

  
     you snapped out of your thoughts by a hard slap on the back. broderick said nothing, but he obviously wanted you to get back to work. you weren’t paying attention, but you might have been slowing down which would explain the discipline.

  
     you placed down your metal mallet and swiped at the sweat collecting over your pale skin. you pushed your tinted glasses up further the bridge of your nose and sighed, feeling the heat exhaustion overcoming you now that you’ve stopped. it felt like the hottest day of the year, but you could say that every day because nothing changes in this stupid village; at least not for you.   
that day, you had finished a sword that you had been working on for months; a white sword you named caledfwlch. the sword was pretty nice, you had to admit. it had a silver grip a white blade and a white, pointy cross guard on each side. it was more a showpiece than an actual working sword, but hey; people buy useless shit all the time! that's just a few more pennies in your pocket.

 

     you wished that you could retire for the day as you had just finished another project, but of course, that's not how shit works. you took a piece of paper and pulled out a pot of ink and a cheap pen; you wrote your signature in the bottom corner and wrote the price down onto the tag. you tied it onto the cross guard with a piece of thin string and placed it up on the wall to be sold.   
     you huffed and wiped the sweat off of your forehead, pulling your hair off of your wet forehead. ew. gross. as if some sort of god heard your plea for a break, broderick walked up behind you.

 

     you looked behind your back to look at him. he didn’t like it when he talked but wasn’t acknowledged. “hey, bro-”

 

     “call me broderick. go get food from the market. we are running low,” he said simply in his monotonous tone, his lips barely moving. and as soon as he was there, he was gone.

 

     you waited until he was gone to sigh in relief, pulling a loose blouse over your tank so you didn’t look as sweaty and gross. with a pouch of coins in your pocket, you headed off towards the weekly market. you weren’t really planning on getting much from the market; you would rather go to the bakery and pick up some fresh produce than get overpriced garbage. broderick usually never fed you, so he really just needed food for himself, but you still chose appealing things as you never knew if you would be able to eat a nice homecooked meal. probably not, but that's pleasant to think of. it sounds nice.

 

     you got a few hearts of romaine, four tomatoes, and a fuck ton of carrots. no one in their right mind could eat that many carrots without them going bad, but they were insanely cheap.

 

     you made a quick stop in the egbert bakery for a loaf of bread and to talk to john for a bit.

 

     “hello, mr. egbert,” you greeted as you entered the bakery doors, trying to balance the bags in your hands. “a loaf of bread, please?”

 

     “of course. dave. how are you today?” he asked, reaching behind a counter and handed you the bread. it was wrapped nicely in paper. “john will be out in a moment. im sure he isn’t too busy.”

     you gave him a small smile and thanked him, handing him the gold coins and shoving the loaf into one of your bags.

 

     surely enough, as soon as john had heard that you were there, he had come rushing out of the kitchen, his clothes covered in flour, butter, and what seemed to be vanilla extract. “dave! i haven’t seen you in, like, forever!” he exclaimed, running forward and giving you a rushed hug.

 

     you gave john a smile and wiped the flour off of your dark pants. “man, watch where you're flinging your flour!” you snickered, silently hoping bro wouldn’t notice. you didn’t need him knowing that you had been slacking off with one of your friends.

 

     “ughhh! whatever. anyways, what's new! nothing for me, of course,” john said, brushing some of the butter out of his hair with his fingers. you will never understand how he got so messy.

 

     “well;” you start, and john visibly gets excited since you never have anything new. “im planning on going on a small adventure.”

 

     he gasped and hit you on the arm. “really? and i’m not coming with you?”

 

     “no can do, bro. this is a single-strider mission. ill bring you some souvenirs though.” you weren’t quite sure about going through with your plan, but you felt like you had to tell john. it was important to you, after all!

 

“fine! make sure to draw me some pictures of the hotties you find in your trip, too,” he joked, elbowing you suggestively. you missed this.

 

     “the only hottie there is gonna be me. anyways, egbert, i’ve gotta skidaddle. i have a lot of work to get done today and i can’t afford to miss out on any more time.”

 

     john hummed in understanding, swiping his hair away from his face. “yeah. i’ve got tons of work to get done in the kitchen. it was nice talking to you, dave! have fun with the trip hotties!”

 

     “oh, i will,” you called out and headed for the door of the bakery, leaving with some rush in your step. before you could leave, though, you did call out your thanks to mr. egbert and sped through the crowd of merchants and customers alike.

 

     the market wasn’t too far from your house, and as you got near, you got a little faster (to nearly a sprint). you hoped to god that you hadn’t loitered around the egbert bakery and residence for too long. you dropped the food onto the counter inside and rushed up the steps of your small house to your bedroom, collecting your holster, your old sword, and a ratty jacket. you slid the items under your bed and looked behind you to see if broderick was watching.

 

     even if he had been there, you could never quite if he was ever watching or not. he had a talent of being able to watch people without physically being there.

 

     taking one last glance around your room, you also slid a jacket under as well to hide the items below.

 

     standing again, you rushed back downstairs and hoped to get started on another sword blade until it got too dark to work. you continued to work anyways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wish i could take this story slower... this chapters storyline was supposed to be in chapter two or three, but here it is; i might make this shorter than intended (i wanted twenty to thirty chapters) but make it a series (with about ten chapters a book)
> 
> any thoughts? thanks for reading lovelies!!


	3. skaia mountain

           that night, you had finished another sword instead of sleeping. it was a generic sword with a leather handle and a ragged blade, but you didn’t care. you were leaving.

  
           it was a spur of the moment decision more than anything, but you had a big feeling that you needed to leave. you weren't quite sure why you wanted to finish one last sword before you left. you guess it was to take away some of the stress that you were feeling. it's not like you could go into this blind, of course, because you were going to try and slay a fucking dragon! you needed to be prepared.

  
           you ran up the steps of your ratty home/shop, trying to keep all your thoughts at bay. what were you doing!? this was an extremely stupid idea! yet you still went on and collected your trusty sword, holster, and jacket from under your bed. you packed the items into an old bag. you knew you wouldn't need much because it was only a few hour trip to the mountain. (and you couldn't get away with taking some food from broderick even if you tried. you were pretty sure broderick took inventory of everything that he owned to make sure you never took anything without asking). but you were leaving with your own stuff, so he shouldn't notice. that is until he realizes that the constant clanging of metal against metal wasn't heard in the morning. it was just before the brink of sunrise, so broderick shouldn't be up yet. you hope to god he wasn't, or else you were about to get your ass one-handedly handed to you.

  
           with a jacket over your shoulders and a messenger bag slung in your arms, you slipped out of your window and dropped the ten or fifteen feet out of your house. it was less risky than exiting out of the front door since there might be tripwire or some sort of mechanism that might clue that you were leaving. it's only happened to you once, but after you tried to leave early to go meet with rose, broderick easily found you out but hearing a little bell connected to a tripwire ring.

  
           the fall stung your ankles, and you waited a few seconds until they stopped burning to rush away from your house. you started to go over a mental map of the forest in your head. the forest didn't really have a name, and people just called it the forest since there were no other forests around anyways. it was dark with few openings and dead leaves piled on the ground wherever you looked. there is no grass, and instead, moss covered the ground where there weren't any leaves. there was a rocky path that led close to skaia mountain, and from there you had to chop through the trees and hope that you made it there before sunset.

  
           it was a bad plan, but it worked because you had little time to think of one when your mind was constantly ringing with anxieties of every shape and kind.

  
           once you made it to the forest, you had to fight through ivy and vines to find the path. the path looked like it hadn't been walked on in about a year. the forest wasn't as unsettling as people usually took dark forests for because it wasn't dead silent. there were noises of the leaves under your feet, birds, and other wildlife stirring in the morning. you could also hear an owl cooing not too far away.

  
           by the time the sun was fully up, you couldn't see skaia mountain at all. the trees and flora were so thick that you could barely see the sky, yet its light was still shining through the leaves every now and then. constantly having black tinted glasses on didn't help the fact that it was too dark to see, but you didn't feel like taking them off. they made you feel a little bit more confident, which was good to have while trekking through the shrubbery.

  
           basically nothing happened through your long walk in the forest. by the time you had made it out of the forest, the sun was just starting to set into the horizon, making the mountain in front of you look extra beautiful.

  
           little did you know that the forest was the easy part. going up the mountain would be way harder. there was a trail, of course, but it was very thin, and you didn't quite want to fall off of a mountain this far into your expedition.

  
           you, of course, also didn't come prepared to climb a mountain (even though you knew you would have to) and tried your best to get up as quickly as possible without scraping up your knees too badly and scabbing up your hands. you figured you might need them if you're actually going to attempt to slay a dragon.

  
           speaking of dragons, you hadn't really thought about how you were actually going to go approach this dragon without getting yourself killed. going in blind like the rest of this adventure was a horrible idea but you ended up pulling through anyways.

 

           this, though… you couldn’t quite wing a dragon assassination.

 

           you just decided to try and jump it and try to slice its throat… but come to think of it, you didn’t quite want to kill a dragon.

 

           of course, you were having second thoughts right now as you were ¾ the way up the mountain! you still couldn’t shake the feeling, though, that you didn’t want to have dragon blood and guts all over your pale hands. the last thing you wanted was to smell iron all over the place and kill a dragon in its own home, surprised to be slain in its own home.

 

           god- stop it!

 

           you almost fell off of the mountain as you slammed your hand against the hard wall and made your fist bleed.

 

           maybe you didn’t have to slay the dragon. you just had to stop thinking like that and think positive; you could just turn around now! you could just apologize to broderick and take the hits and return to your everyday life and-

 

           before you knew it, you were at the mouth of the cave, and the sun was setting. no turning back now.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiya! sorry for this shortie, i just wanted to get out a little note and decided to post a tiny update as well!
> 
> how often do yall want updates? ive been updating really often lately and wanted to know if yall wanted a specific schedule or to have n schedule at all. im really impulsive and like to post things as soon as im done if im not set to a strict schedule. 
> 
> comment your thoughts if you would like! thanks for reading!


	4. changes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have absolutely no self control :)

           with your messenger bag in your fidgety hands, you approached the small cave. you took in a big gulp, pursuing your chapped lips together as you took in the sights of the cave. after the same old thing for days… for years on end, you finally had a change and something interesting.

  
           but you were so fucking nervous.

  
           you couldn’t pinpoint why you were so nervous, but you couldn’t quite seem to catch a full breath and your hands and feet twitched. you could just turn back and head back to the shop again, face the consequences of leaving without a word, and not worry about getting your face seared off by a dragon. could dragons even breathe fire? you weren’t sure if it was a myth.  
then suddenly, something waved over you; what if dragons didn’t actually exist? you hadn’t ever heard anyone talk about them other than in storybooks and in cave drawings and such. it

           wouldn’t be the first time broderick had faked you out for a few laughs; plus, he hadn’t brought up the dragon thing in years…

  
           you tried to distract yourself by taking in the cave some more. it wasn’t that breathtaking, just a large opening in mount skaia that was easily over 40 or 50 feet. the cave walls were scorched with black and you could see shiny pieces of scrap metal and gold coins littered all over the ground farther down…

  
           holy shit!

           of all the tall tales you had heard, these factors were hella spot on.

  
           you flexed your pale hands one last time before grabbing your sword from its holster and holding it out defensively. you took cautious steps into the cave, gazing around carefully.  
the cave was extremely long. the cave walls were jagged and covered with engravings and drawings meaning god knows what. you thought it was disappointing that no one would be able to decipher these messages and what they mean. especially since the people who made these drawings and engravings probably put a lot of hard work into them.

  
           you almost ran into the dead end at the end of the cave as you were looking over the carvings carefully and trying to figure out what they meant. you skidded to a stop and looked at the dead end dejectedly. really? had you really traveled this far for a few engravings that you couldn’t decipher if your life depended on it?

  
           you let out a groan and raised your sword, slashing it against the stone in aggravation.

           “god damn it!” you yell, slashing your sword again and watching as the blade snapped in half and the top half flew back at you, cracking your black tinted glasses and slightly scratching your cheek.

  
           you let out a huff and threw off your shades, letting them crack against the cave walls. you kicked the dead end one last time and turned around, disheartened.

  
           as you quickened your pace to the ending of the cave, you heard a loud boom and turned to see that the “dead end” had fallen over, and holy shit.

  
           there was a humongous pile of gold and shiny objects illuminated by a single torch, and on top lay a (rather small) dragon with grey scales, red talons, and crimson wings that were severely torn. the rips looked painful, like the dragon's wings had been ripped apart. you doubted the dragon would be barely double the size of you on its hind legs, which is kind of small compared to how big these dragons had been described as before in storybooks.

  
           the dragon was asleep but was stirring. you could feel the trouble you had gotten yourself into in the air, but you couldn’t quite leave. you made your mark. you bet that dragons had super-smell or something that could help track down prey super easily, almost like a dog.

  
           you watched in slight horror as the dragon stretched and did circles around his rather large treasure pile like a dog. were dragons just big and scale-y dogs? the world may never know.  
the dragon went to lay down again, but before he could, he locked eyes with you and let out a snuff. fuck.

  
           “fuck,” you cursed, since you always said the first thing that came to your mind.

  
           “how the fuck did you knock that down?” was the first thing the dragon said.

  
           the dragon said something. it spoke! holy shit!

  
           “i broke my sword and it just fell down,” you responded, your eyes darting around to find some sort of escape route. how come you didn’t think this through? you were standing in front of a fucking dragon who looked like it wanted to murder you!! and all you could do was stare!!!

  
           you were such a big idiot. you were just waiting until the dragon painted with your blood as red as your eyes all over and had a jovial time with your insides. all out jump rope with your disembodied flesh or whatever.

  
           the dragon crawled off of its gold pile. you could tell it had a limp by the way it was cautiously not stepping on his back right leg. it got right up in your face, its beady red eyes boring into your own.

  
           “why are you here?” it demanded, letting out a huff of hot air into your face that ruffled your hair.

  
           “why am i here?” you repeated, flashing the dragon a nervous grin. “well that doesn’t really matter since im just on my way just about now!”

  
           you turned to walk away, but the dragon shoved your shoulder with his muzzle. “you can’t leave, dumbass. i won't let you. tell me, oh sir knight, why you happened to stop by my cave? i am so curious as to why you happened to drop by.”

  
           you squint your eyes at the dragon, your mouth down-turning in annoyance. “first of all, im not a knight. no armor, yeah? second of all, why should i tell you? what are you going to do?”  
you probably shouldn’t be testing a goddamn dragon, but you were slightly pissed at the sarcasm and nerve of this creature. okay, you get it, this dragon happens to be an almighty creature, but that doesn’t mean he can just try and get your whole life story from you!

  
           the dragon huffed again, which was getting quite annoying by how much it did it, and dropped down on his pile again. “okay. fine. be stubborn.”

  
           quiet draped over the two of you quickly, and you instantly hated it. you needed some noise before you started going insane. but it was absolutely silent.

  
           “can i leave now? or…?” you started, and it shook its head. alright, you can’t leave. you could just leave without its blessing, but you didn’t want to know what it could do to you. “what the hell do you want from me? i could have just been exploring, as stupid teens do, and stumbled upon an almighty dragon! this is bullshit.”

  
           the dragon glared at you. “my name is karkat. take it or fuckin’ leave it. also, i didn’t ask for an interesting reason, i just need to know why you interrupted my rest to know if i have to get prepared to fight or something stupid like that. it doesn’t happen a lot but i still have to be prepared, which fucking sucks.”

  
           you bit your lip and cursed under your breath. he was right. you could have lied your way out of this situation, but you were too on edge to think of it. technically, you could still lie your way out of this situation, but you didn’t think that was the best idea.

  
           “so, karkat, i just have to stay here until i tell you why im up here?”

  
           “mhmm.”

  
           “damn,” you curse softly, looking to the left. “i lost my cat. i came up here looking for it.”

  
           karkat looked at you and raised his dragon browbones. or… whatever bones above his eyes helped him create emotion (hey, you couldn’t be blamed for not knowing what the fuck they were called! its not like you're an expert on dragon anatomy!). “you aren’t a cat person,” he said simply, and you couldn’t help but feel that you were being taunted.

  
           “fine! it was my dog,” you tried, pouting and settling on the ground with a loud thump!

  
           “it wasn’t an animal, smart ass. there are no scent glands in here besides yours, mine, and a few mice or whatever other animals happen to be here.” karkat shuffled towards you, taking the torch next to his bed of riches and lighting other torches around the room which made it more visible. there were more carvings all over the ceilings and walls. “just tell me the truth and get this over with so we dont have to bother each other more than we already fucking are.”

  
           you paled a bit (which was an achievement because you literally could not get any paler) and huffed. “okay! okay, okay… my brother- do dragons even have family concepts? i dont even know- has always told me that these training sessions he put me through since for-fucking-ever would come in handy when i go fight something big… and i wanted to impress him. but now i dont know. i might just leave and… yknow… get my ass whooped and get even less food, no biggie. so yeah.”

  
           why the fuck did you tell karkat this? he was perfectly sentient and not just a brainless creature; he was sure to see the fault in what was happening. you used to refuse the fact that your brother was bad. you don’t look up to him anymore like you used to. hes abusive. hes horrible. you guess you just wanted to get away.

 

           “i guess i just needed to get away. even if only for a while.”

  
           you really wished you thought before you spoke.

  
           “mother of god,” karkat muttered, pausing before he lighted the last torch in the room.

  
           you shifted uncomfortably, playing with your hands in your lap. “can i leave now?” you asked, your lips inevitably turning down into a frown.

  
           “you actually want to go back?” karkat demanded, scoffing incredulously. “that sounds like it fucking sucks. like- a hella lot. im not gonna keep you here- er- human, but… i do need some help with something if you are up for it… i can-”

  
           “don’t pity me, but... ” you cut him off, sitting up on your knees. “i can’t go back. if he finds out i broke my shades and found a dragon but didnt kill it he would actually all up slit my throat. actually. and my names dave.”

 

           karkat stared at you. “oh. do you even care about the reward?”

  
           “i don’t care. i’ll help you. i’ll do anything. just, please… protect me in return?”

  
           karkat shrugged. “sure.”

  
           he shuddered his wings and curled up next to you instead of on his pile. you could feel… probably some sort of pity or empathy just emanating off of karkat. you didn’t want pity. “don’t pity me,” you said again, rather hoarsely. you didn’t care if it made karkat uncomfortable and shift weirdly; you just didn’t want any. you didn’t want anymore then you already had received as a child. what you would pay to not have to rely on a fucking dragon to have a more normal life. god.. you were just ready to adventure and-

  
           “sorry. anyways, i guess i should explain what i need help with. i know not many little shits like my kind, but… im stuck,” karkat trailed off, fluttering his wings in what seemed to be embarrassment. “im a shapeshifter. i was almost killed off a while ago and have been stuck in the last form i was in for the rest of my life so i could stay alive- that is, unless, i have a rider who is willing to accompany me until im fully healed.”

  
           you stared at karkat in confusion. “what do you mean ‘fully healed’? are you hurt?” you asked, scanning karkat curiously.

  
           “no. not yet, i fucking guess. the process is real gruesome, actually. i have to have all of my feathers plucked from my crest and a sign burned into my neck… talons ripped, scales sliced… im not sure why it’s fuckin’ necessary, but apparently it rips the dragon genes from my spirit and frees my soul. allows me to shift whenever i want, even into my natural form. but as of now… im stuck.” karkat huffed out of his nose and slammed a paw down on the cave floor. “i've been here for years. i just needed… you, i guess.”

  
           you stare at him, your eyes blurry from how bright the room was (it probably wasn’t that bright but you had broken your shades so it was rather difficult to focus). “what the fuck?” you mutter, sneering. “is that painful?”

  
           “no, shit for brains. it’s not painful. it’s not like im getting slashed and body mutilated to be able to shift again.”

  
           “jeez!” you whined, holding your hands up in defense. “i was just curious! all up jus’ wonderin’ if i had to take care of you while you were dyin’ in my feeble human arms! watch you as you bleed out onto the ground and shit! im not looking forward to a bloodbath like that. like-”

  
           “god, just shut up for three seconds! yes, there is going to be blood. no, i am not going to fucking die. i am not going to be nursed back to health in your ‘feeble human arms’ either. you just have to keep watch and… i dunno. there might be horrorterrors as well. like a fucking seizure that you might have to stop or whatever.” karkat spoke about seizures like they were no big deal! that is a big deal!

  
           “i- i guess... do we have to shake on it? make a deal with the devil or some shit?” you asked, leaning back against the cold cave walls.

  
           “no. technically speaking, we are already bound.” that left you hella confused.

  
           with that, karkat lay his head down and shut his blank eyes, letting a huff of air out of his nose as he got settled. you wanted to say something, but you knew he wouldn’t answer. instead, you just settled with a feeble “thank you” and tried to get some sleep.


	5. ((concept art))

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> some concept art that i made instead of editing :))   
> NOT A CHAPTER

whenever im sick, i lose the motivation to edit/write and instead get inspiration to draw, so i decided to make some concept art of the characters that have been introduced so far (minus somel what can i say, i really don't like bro!)!

 

[the post on my amino!! just a lil bit of proof!](https://aminoapps.com/c/homestuck-hiveswap/page/blog/the-water-had-caught-fire/E47L_DQfPux8aG1jx4m0j8opvlgXxLzdL1)

(also, if yall wanna talk to me, feel free to talk to me on amino! i love meeting new people!)

 

without further delay, heres the concepts! (pardon my horrible watercolor skills! uwu)

 

 

thats about it! thanks for reading to this point and know that i seriously appreciate it <3\. (also, all of these pictures are outfits from the future; except for john (who is just insensitive to heat) and the dragon karkat (who is just... a dragon)

bye!


	6. prospit mountain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry ive been gone, but im feeling better now! have a shortie. its kinda necessary to get to the actual plotty stuff, so i hope you enjoy!

           when you woke up, you could tell you had only slept for a few hours because you were still exhausted and it was still slightly dark outside.  


 

           you looked around you, expecting to see your small room, but instead being met with a dark cave with a dragon watching you intently.

 

           “holy shit!” you cried, jumping and reaching for your sword… which wasn’t there. your memory took a second to recollect, but you easily calmed down and muttered a small apology to karkat who looked indifferent.

 

           “why the hell are you up right now?” he asked, getting up from his spot next to you and retrieving something with his mouth from behind his gold pile and tossing it to you. it was a slightly damp blanket and was surprisingly soft. you gladly took it. “it’s really early.”

 

           “i could ask the same thing for you? why were you up?” you asked, watching karkat as he paced around the room and blew out the torches as natural light started to seep into the entrance of the cave. he kept every other torch lit.

 

           he stopped for a moment to stare at you like you were an idiot. “dragons are nocturnal, dumbass.”

 

           you just said a quiet “oh” and sunk deeper into the blanket karkat had given you. your cheeks were warm from a little bit of embarrassment. “but aren’t you a shapeshifter? you aren’t actually a dragon, so its not like you would really adapt to their habits and shit?”

 

           karkat huffed and continued to work with the torches, still having the slight limp in his leg from the day before. “as i said before, dipshit, i have been stuck as a dragon for a little over seven years. you would think that i would adapt to some sort of lifestyle by now.”

 

           “huh,” you muttered, staying quiet after that. karkat seemed pretty annoyed with you anyways, so shutting your mouth was the best thing to do (though karkat always seemed annoyed).

 

           you instead decided to look at your surroundings a little better. there were stalactites hanging from the ceiling everywhere you looked that dripped water every now and then. it was rather dark in the cave, but you could make out cave drawings of different shapes and sizes littering the walls. the biggest and the most noticeable carving had an image of a dragon with what seemed to be glowing eyes. it was also the only drawing in color. though it was faded, the dragon seemed to be green with multicolored eyes. you didn’t quite like that dragon. it gave you a weird feeling.

 

           your eyes flicked around and saw nothing much of interest. all the drawings were the same; some sort of array warriors, flames, and bones, all in different orders. none of them were in color. you couldn’t tell what they were. compared to the inscriptions outside of the large room, they were pretty straightforward. the long entrance to the cave had been littered with carvings that made absolutely no sense. you made a mental note to ask karkat if he knew what any of them meant.

 

           and there was also karkat that you hadn’t thought much of. he was a dragon, but really, he was a shapeshifter. this all felt kind of normal; as if hanging out in a dragon cave wasn’t the weirdest thing you’ve ever done (which it was! you would think you would be more freaked about this!). you didn’t know much of karkat, but he didn’t know much about you either. you decided it was your job to annoy the shit out of him by asking random shit about him.

 

           but you didn’t quite know anything to ask him, so you waited until he finished whatever he was doing until he spoke up.

 

           “how are you feeling?” he asked, sitting down on his hind legs (which, surprisingly, was poised like a dog).

 

           you stared at karkat from your blanket pile in subtle confusion. “i’ve been fine the whole time?” you said, but it sounded more like a question than anything. 

 

           “you’re upset about something, dipshit! you don’t have to tell me jack shit, but i’m just wondering if you’re feeling any better!” karkat snapped, huffing and sitting down on his hind legs like an actual human. he was right, and you hated that he could read you so easily.

 

           “jeez, what's with the chip on your shoulder? a whole fuckin’ bag of chips. potato party on your damn sh-”

 

           karkat groaned and stroked back the feathers on the top of his head. “okay, sure, yeah, i have a whole bag of potatoes on my shoulder. whole fucking bag. now will you shut the hell up and let me continue my explanation?”

 

           you just smirked and hummed in response, locking your metaphorical mouth zipper with a metaphorical key. what kind of a zipper has a lock and key anyways? not any zipper dave had heard of with an actual key and what not. you threw the key, but you were sure you wouldn’t be able to stay quiet for more than a fraction of a minute.

 

           karkat huffed and flopped down onto his stomach instead of sitting upright. “we are leaving tonight,” he declared, looking around the room. you would say that he looked expressionless, but you couldn’t really make out emotions unless they were distinct with his features. “i have a scarf and shirt you can borrow somewhere because its gonna get fuckin’ cold.”

 

           your felt your eyes widen a bit, breaking your lips from the metaphorical zip. “cold? nippy enough that ill have to wear more than one shirt? a whole fuckin scarf? i don’t think i’ve ever experienced the cold other than being shoved in a freezer when i was three,” you joked, emerging from your blanket cocoon. “where are we going that actually requires layers??

 

           “a mountain called prospit. its constantly snowing up there.”

 

           “oh shit!” you say, a little more excited than you anticipated. “snow? ive never seen the stuff before.”

 

           karkat hums and rolls over onto his back. “since the sun just rose, it should be…”

 

           “it’s 7:08,” you responded with quickness. you have always had a sort of quirk that lets you know the exact time without looking at the clock or even the sun. its strange and you have never understood when or how or why you had it. karkat turned his head and looked at you with wide eyes. “was that a guess? or…”

 

           you shook your head no. y’know, like a badass. “ive just always been able to tell the time. it’s something i’ve always had, i guess.” you shrug like its nothing.

 

           karkat hummed and sat up, playing with the pebbles on the ground. he was obviously restless, but you couldn’t quite tell why. “so we are leaving tonight… do i need to prepare for a battle or whatever? because i sorta kinda don’t have a sword anymore since i broke it last night.”

 

karkat shook his head and walked over to his stuff-pile, grabbing the aforementioned scarf and shirt from the back and tossing them to you like he had with the blanket. “the elder shouldn’t hurt you unless you threaten him. so… yeah, don’t be an idiot and don’t intimidate him. otherwise, you should be fine.”

 

           you caught the clothes and slipped off your t-shirt, pulling the long sleeved shirt over your head. you then put your t-shirt back on and wrapped the scarf around your neck. “this is fuckin’ awesome!! i’ve never worn more than one shirt at a time. hell, i’ve never owned more than one shirt at a time, so i couldn't, even if i wanted to. but how the hell do scarves even work? they’re death traps, as far as im concerned, that you wrap around your neck! i-”

 

           “yes, yes- blah blah blah, do you want help or not?”

 

           “i know how to use a scarf!” you cried, rewrapping the scarf around your neck again with more failure than the last attempt. “okay, yeah, maybe i need a bit of help. 

 

           karkat hobbled over and wrapped the thick scarf around your neck and shoulders. you decided that scarves are badass and you loved it. “thanks,” you said, standing up and stretching out your limbs. “why do we have to go at night? its all nice and bright and early right now.”

 

           karkat froze staring at you like a deer in headlights (or more like a dragon in headlights, but then again, what were headlights anyways? you didn’t know). “uh- no reason. lets get ready to go before it starts to get dark so we have the whole night to get there.”

 

           “do you just not like the light? like an all up vampire?  _ are  _ you a vampi-”

 

           “if you keep up that chain of thought, i will snap every bone in your body and feed them to the imaginary “dog” you were chasing after,” he snapped, and it took every bone in your body to not laugh.

 

           “ill keep that in mind. hey, do dragons even drink blood, anyways?”

 

           karkat huffed and banged his forehead against the wall. you couldn’t help but burst into laughter that time. 


	7. the elder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have rewritten this chapter three times... this is also not beta read bc i cant stand staring at this chapter anymore!!!
> 
> also, if you think something is brought up a lot and might be foreshadowing something, you might be right. ;) 
> 
> lastly im not getting notifications for comments on here so sorry if i dont respond to comments right away!!
> 
> feel free to talk to me on my instagram or say something on me tellonym! both are @bejeweeled. 
> 
> !!TW: BLOOD!!

       true to karkat’s word, you left right at sundown. you weren't quite sure where you were going, besides the name of prospit mountain. 

 

       prior to leaving, karkat had found a pair of shades similar to yours and you gladly took them. except, of course, they weren't shattered outside of the cave and instead on the bridge of your nose.

 

       you weren’t sure what to expect on your trip to prospit mountain, other than the fact that it was going to be cold, and you were going to meet someone called the elder. the name of this elder person was enough to make you feel weary. you really never have met someone of higher authority before (other than your bro. he made you scared shitless half of the time) and you weren’t quite sure of what to say or what to do.

 

       you could say that you were anxious all you wanted, but karkat seemed to have anxiety rippling off of him in waves. he had been pacing around his cave countless times and couldn't seem to just sit down and take a break from whatever he seemed to be doing. so yeah, your slight worry was nothing compared to the tsunamis of his trepidation.

 

       “okay,” karkat said as the sun was almost set, and it was 7:33 p.m. “we should be good now.” you still were hella confused why you couldn’t leave during the day, but karkat obviously wasn’t going to tell dave shit.

 

       “alrighty,” you chimed back, gratefully fiddling with the sunglasses on your nose. that wasn’t what they were called, of course(they were shades or tinted glasses. never have you heard someone call them sunglasses), but it was still a cool name for some sea glass on wire. “sooo… karkat. my pal. my bro-”

 

       “don’t call me that,” karkat huffed, grabbing a bag of some coins (which probably just came from karkat’s loot pile; he had a shit ton of golden things, the small sack probably didnt even make a dent in his pile) from his plethora of shiny shit. “now continue your sentence with real, grammatical speech. that is if you’re capable of it.”

 

       you let out an exaggerated sigh, successfully wrapping your scarf around your neck. “my acquaintance, karkat. how invigorating would it be to know more of this elder and why he has your utmost permission to-”

 

       the shapeshifter sighed, cutting you off, and promptly turned from you to sling a saddle over his back. “now you’re just being a smartass.” he worked it around his neck and fastened the best that went around his chest. he but the sack of treasures in a sack connected to the saddle. 

 

       “anyways, “this elder…” i owe him. he owes me. you would think it cancels out, but no. of course it fucking doesn’t.” karkat huffed and laid down, looking at you expectantly. it took you a second to understand that it was an invitation to get on karkat’s back. you hopped up onto his back and settled down on the saddle.

 

       “so… yeah. he’s an utter douche who knows how to get to you and always finds ways to get shit out of you. he’s probably going to want to talk to you, don’t let him get to you,” karkat explained, sitting up and glancing back at you, making sure you were on fine. he started to move forward and you gripped onto his feathers in response. he didn’t seem to care.

 

       “oh shit, im screwed,” you muttered, biting your lip. “is he like… an all-knowing god?” you half-joked, although you still would like to know. 

 

       karkat kept sauntering forward, keeping his gaze firmly on the sun. “you… could say that,” he uttered, and you could just facepalm right then and there.

 

       “well fuck.” you looked around the cave walls again, scanning over all the pictures covering the walls. 

 

       “do you know what these mean?” you asked, leaning over and running your fingers along the carvings all over the walls. the carvings were shallow and textured, cutting your skin on the ragged edges.

 

       karkat didn’t look back at you but said “no. i   been living for hundreds of years, dumbass. but i know the backstory behind it.” when he realized you were waiting for him to continue, he started to elaborate. “  a prophecy. there was a lord many years ago that tried to conquer the world and was defeated by a couple of warriors, sixteen i think. its prophecized by many that there will be another group with an alike number that will destroy this lord when he rises again. that's what these walls and inside the cave are rumored to hold.”

 

       “huh.” you gazed around the cave walls one last time before emerging into the dulling sunlight. karkat shivered and shook his feathers, obviously uncomfortable. “when was the last time you came out of your cave?”

 

       karkat huffed, flexing out his wings. “that's irrelevant,” he uttered simply, a slight growl to his voice. he looked back at you, glaring his eyes before sighing and adding “six years.” 

 

       “oh shit,” you blurted out, leaning forward and slightly tugging at his feathers. “why not?” you asked, and he repulsed, arching his neck from you so you stopped pulling. you muttered an apology.

 

       “why would i? im fine in my cave.” he huffed, and before you could further question him, he lifted off into the sky and you yelped, grabbing onto his crest again in the hopes to hold on. 

 

       you and karkat had no more conversation (because the wind was so loud against your ears and both of you probably didn’t want to scream). 

 

       the trip was fairly short, consisting of you getting lost in (surprisingly positive) thought, thinking of john and thinking of the crows that you haven't fed in a few days and trying not to think of your bro. 

 

       before you can worry too much about how much he’ll beat your ass when you get home, karkat lands on a large mountain and sits down, letting out a few pants. “shit,” you heard him mutter under his breath, and you hopped off of his back, briskly striding (hah) over to where he could see you.

 

       “are you alright?” you asked, hesitantly reaching up and stroking back his feathers. they were soft to the touch.

 

       karkat struggled to catch his breath but nodded his head. “i… yeah. im fine.” he tucked his wings tightly against his torso and straightened his posture, ruffling out his feathers. you took your hand away from his crest. “my wings are ripped. it makes it hard to fly.”

 

       you furrowed your brows, feeling a shiver go down your body. it was cold, but it wasnt snowing. when you couldn’t see an opening to a cave anywhere, you looked up and realized that you had to climb. “sorry…” karkat apologized, fatigue lacing his voice. you felt pity. “i couldn’t go on any longer. its not that long of a walk.”

 

       “its fine. take your time,” you said sympathetically, but karkat stood up and sauntered forwards anyways. “okay, or we can go.”

 

       karkat huffed and kept going, and you had to sprint to catch up to him.

 

       “so. i guess we should talk about what's gonna happen after all of this shit,” karkat spoke after a moment of silence. you glanced over at him, glaring his eyes to see karkat through the dark of the night. 

 

       “didn’t we already go over that? elder bros gonna fuck shit up, ive gotta take care of his mess, and nurse you back to health in my feeble human arms. seems like we’ve already got this mutilation down to a tee,” you explained, wrapping your arms around your body as you both ascended higher. karkat wasn’t lying when he said it was going to be cold.

 

       he sighed, his feathers ruffling in frustration. “no, dumbass. after im better. i’ll owe you, then.” 

 

       “you… really don’t need to,” you said after a pause, trying not to think about yourself. “we’re… bound, or whatever, right? i don’t really believe in all that fate stuff, but i guess its just supposed to happen?? i dunno how this shit works, don’t quote me on it.”

 

       “i never explained that to you,” karkat said, keeping his eyes on the trail. “but… no, that's not really it. i still owe you. so… i guess im your protector now. we made the deal earlier, so you can change it, if you want, but…”

 

       you pursed your lips. “i… really don’t care. i just… can’t go back. well. i can, you don’t have to keep me, i don’t just wanna hang around when its unwanted. i just… yeah.”

 

       karkat stayed quiet. “i… really still don’t understand what is going on at your home, but. you’re free to stay. im not going to be staying in my cave for much longer after this… but we can travel together.”

 

       you felt yourself slightly smile. you nodded, even though you knew karkat couldn’t see you, and didn’t say anything else.

 

       not before long, you and karkat made it to the top of skaia mountain, where a large cave opening lay. it was way larger than karkat’s; there were rubies and gold nuggets lining the walls, and it just let off regal energy. you didn’t like it at all. the cave just made you feel weird. 

 

       “ah, karkat vantas,” rang a voice from deep inside the cave that ran shivers down your spine. you hated it. “you finally arrived again, with the appropriate rider.”

 

       karkat let out a huff from beside you and entered the cave, and you floundered behind him. “glad to know i don’t have to go find a guy myself. do whatever you need.”

 

       from the dark emerged a humungous white dragon with slight green scars on his face. you assumed he was the elder. “not so quickly, young one. i would like to talk to you. both of you, and your rider, dave strider. you don’t seem to have a middle name, do you young one? neither of you do. it’s fitting, both bearing unfit guardians and unfit names.”

 

       you tried to keep your mannerisms unreadable. karkat said he was good at getting under your skin, and it was working. you stayed quiet.

 

       “wait, you knew who my “rider” was but never told me?” karkat growled, glaring his eyes at the elder. 

 

       he merely glanced down at karkat. “do not snap at me, young one. it will do you no good.” karkat cowered back slightly before the elder continued. “young strider. you’re going to accompany karkat until the end, you know that, right?”

 

       you looked over to the shapeshifter next to you. 

 

       before you could say anything else, the elder flashed towards karkat and slashed his skin open with his claws. there was candy red blood splattered along the walls. 

 

       you winced and covered your eyes, the room smelling of iron and cherries.


	8. tread carefully

        you tried your best to tune out the pained roars that came from karkat. 

 

        he wasn’t lying when he sad that it would be gruesome, and when you opened your eyes, there was blood everywhere, which was kinda gross. instead of a dragon lay a (rather small) boy on the ground, covered in his own blood (ew). he had grey skin and little nubby horns, and ears that reminded you of an elfs ears like in fairytales. the cream of the crop, however, was the fact that every part of his body was ripped at and slashed and overall looking horrible. 

 

        the elder didn’t do anything to clean up, but tossed you some sort of rag from god knows where to clean the shape shifter up a bit. you stared at the towel for a moment before crouching down and trying your best not to touch the cuts, patting the blood off of his skin. 

 

        “that is all,” the elder said monotonously, turning his back to you and started to walk off.    
  


        you couldn’t believe he was just going to let you take care of karkat without any instruction on the way back to his cave or anything. 

 

        right then and there, you ruled out that he was a huge and utter asshole. 

 

        “uhh, aren’t you gonna- i dunno- help me? or at least tell me what the hell i need to do?” you asked incredulously, softly cleansing his neck. there was a symbol burnt into his neck, which kind of looked like a sideways six and nine. 

 

        “im not required to do  _ anything,  _ little one. im not sure if the insolent shapeshifter you’re bonded to told you or not, but i am the guardian of your lands. disobey me all you want, but consequences shall be faced, no matter if you like it or not,” the elder boomed, looking back over his shoulder. he had no face, but you could feel the disapproval in his words.

 

        you bit your lip and furrowed your brows, holding back another witty comment. “why was all this necessary?” you asked after a moment, looking up from the shapeshifter and up to the humongous white dragon in front of you. you scooped karkat up in your arms. he was dangerously light.

 

        “answers come with time,” the elder boomed, looking down at you. “from now on, you must tread carefully.”

 

        holy shit, you hated this dude.

 

        you stared down at the body in your arms for an awkwardly long time before looking back up to the elder. “what do you mean by ‘tread carefully?’ im all for cryptid shit but i’m not quite pickin’ up what you’re puttin’ down.”

 

        he stared at you, his face not moving once (though you didn’t expect him to because he had no facial features except for three haggard scars). “i’m guessing he has not told you.”

 

        he turned to enter his cave again, but you flash stepped forward. “wait… is it bad?” you asked, sudden anger bubbling in your gut. “did i just screw up? did i help the wrong person?”   
  


        the elder huffed at you, the same way karkat did. “you didn’t have a choice in the matter, my friend. you were destined to come help him in his quests, and bound to him by-”

 

        you snorted with melancholy and glared your eyes behind your shades, cutting the elder off. “since when did all this fate stuff exist? i didn’t agree to being “bound” to a shapeshifter, i agreed to help him in exchange for somethin’ of my own-”

 

        “protection,” the elder chimed in with his sagely voice, playing with the scales on his side, “you asked for protection from your abusive father. understandable.” 

 

        you stuttered out random words that barely made any sense. you were getting rather pissed off at this “elder”. “shut- just shut up!! answer my questions!” you burst, your fingers curling tightly into karkats side. “just… do i have to be wary of him? god… will he just use me?” you begged, your breathing getting heavy and your voice wavering. you sounded  _ weak _ .

 

        the elder turned away from you once more. “no. you need him and he needs you. he will tell you what needs to be known when the time is ripe. as of now, you have to return back to his cave. so long.” 

 

        you gaped and was about to say something, but the mountain around you faded and everything flashed green. your vision went black. 

\---

        you wake up.

 

        you’re not sure how long it’s been (for once), but you seemed to be unconscious up until a few seconds ago. karkat was still in your arms, still looking scarred and horrible, but thankfully still asleep. 

 

        you sat down on your knees and flipped your shades up on top of your head to get a better look at him. karkat wasn’t lying when he said how gruesome this experience would be for him, but you didn’t really understand until you saw it happen. karkat had dark scars all over his neck and hairline from where his feathers were ripped out of his skin. he had a sign burnt into his neck that you swore you had seen before… his skin was cracked and slashed and mutilated, still oozing bright red blood. you felt a little bad for getting mad at him earlier for not telling him something, but you guessed it couldn’t be too bad. karkat was kind of growing on you.

 

        you pulled your cool scarf from around your neck and stared at it for a second, feeling kind of sad to see it go. you  _ loved  _ that scarf. you shrugged and ripped it into three sections, stripping karkat out of his old shirt and wincing. it was  _ bad.  _ you didn’t really want to count, but he had a bunch of slashes, both big and small, all over his body. it didn’t help that you didn’t have anything to disinfect it with, but you were sure he would be fine. you had been patching yourself up without disinfecting yourself for years and you were fine, so you were sure karkat could live with scars. 

 

        you tightly wrapped the scarf around karkat's torso, being careful to not touch any of his cuts. since the scarf was thick, the bleeding should stop before he bled through the scarf. hopefully. 

 

        you secured the scarf-bandage by tucking the end into itself and huffing, running your hands through your platinum hair. who knew patching up someone else could be so hard? you moved on to his arms, wrapping a small piece of the scarf around the broken skin. by the time you were finished fixing all of his wounds, your hands were stained bright red and it was starting to get dark out. 

 

        you gazed around the room, wiping at the sweat that was beading on your brow.  you didn't understand how it had only been almost a week and so much had happened to you. It probably didn't feel like much to any explorer, but to a swordsmith who never stepped out of his town, it was invigorating to feel something else other than fatigue and fear. 

 

        you looked back down at karkat. he still looked bad, but you didn’t really believe that he would look any better since the last time you looked at him. you knew that you couldn't leave even if you wanted to, because you would have nowhere else to go, and he would need someone when he woke up. you didn’t like to think of him waking up, distraught, and covered in scars that he probably couldn't remember. you knew that feeling, and even though you were still upset about not knowing the whole story, you couldn't bring yourself to leave. 

 

        so you would stay with karkat, no matter how long. you were determined to figure out what he didn't tell you. you were determined to learn more about the supposed bond you have with him. but most importantly, he still owed you protection, and you didn’t quite want to pass that up so quickly. 

 

        and then the days went by; it felt like forever, but it had only been four before karkat had woken up. during these days, you had hurriedly rushed down to the village with the extra shirt karkat had given you over your head as a hood as you bought a sketchbook, pencils, and food that didn’t go bad too quickly; you were determined to make as little trips to the village as possible. luckily, no one had recognized you. but you were also pretty sure that no one had realized that you were gone yet, and that made your heart pang in a way that you didn’t quite understand. 

 

        oh well. it didn’t really matter whether or not people noticed you. you didn’t want people to notice you were gone, anyway, since it made it easier on you. 

 

        the trip back to the mountain felt very short and the wait for karkat to wake up felt very long.

 

        it had been approximately 4 days, 5 hours, and 16 minutes until he finally woke up. 

 

        he sat up away from you with a groan at 3:12 pm, sweat beading on his skin. you looked up from your ratty sketchbook and looked him over a few times before saying a measly “hey.”

 

        karkat looked over his shoulder at you, clearly wincing, and stared you down for a few seconds. he was probably trying to remember; remember what happened, remember who you were, and remember why every part of his body felt like it was about to evaporate into dust. at least that's what you were assuming was going through his head as he looked back up and tried to make eye contact with you. you guess you should have flicked your shades up, as he probably would have recognized you better with your red irises showing.

 

        he turned his body fully towards you and let out a raspy “dave?”, struggling to keep himself up.

 

        “that's me,” you said, kicking the blanket off from around your legs. “how do you feel?” 

 

        he groaned and rubbed at his temples. “great. abso-fucking-lutely  _ stellar.  _ what do you think, shitface?”

 

        “man, you’re fiesty-”

 

        “don’t call me that!”

 

        “-but im pretty sure i understand why. actually though, is there anything i can do to make your painful experience less painful?” you offered, and karkat scowled (either in annoyance or pain) and stretched out his legs. 

 

        “help me up,”  he requested and held his hands up so you could pull him up. you stood up and grabbed his clammy hands, pulling him up onto his legs.

 

        karkat wobbled and almost fell over, grabbing onto your hands tighter. “fuck!” he screeched, and you snickered at his dismay. “keep your mouth shut, snail fucker! i’m trying my best!”

 

        “snail fucker,” you hummed, watching him with amusement, “that’s a new one.”

 

        “urghh! shut up,” he groaned, letting go of one of your hands and half-heartedly punching you in the chest. “i don’t think i could count how many times i have told you to be quiet. oh wait, i know! too fucking many. i haven’t walked on two legs in seven years, cut me some slack.”

 

        he stumbled again, and you grabbed his hand again. his yellow claws slightly scratched your skin.

 

        karkat looked a lot more alive than he did for the past few days, when he was unmoving and quickly breathing. his once blank eyes had bright red irises and yellow scleras. he had elf-like ears and a poofy mop of black, curly hair on top of his head and all his features were rounded.

 

        in other words, this shapeshifter was actually kind of cute.

 

        once karkat found his balance, he let go of your hands and stretched a bit more, wincing every so often. well, if he weren’t wincing, you would be hella confused because his whole body was basically mutilated. 

 

        “how long have i been out?” he asked, settling back onto the ground, covering his chest a little self consciously (probably because he didn’t have a shirt on. you threw him the shirt he had supplied you the other day and he gladly took it). 

 

        “4 days, 5 hours, and 54 minutes,” you replied, settling next to him and running your hand through your hair. he looked at you weird. “what now?”

 

        karkat sighed and shrugged, wringing his hands in his lap. “we owe the elder now. i have owed him for forever, but now i’m in even deeper shit, i guess.”

 

        he left his sentence at that, and it took all of your self-control to not rip a big chunk of hair out of your head. “what does that even mean? the elder was talking weird and now you are and im just feeling hella confused. like a-” 

 

        karkat held a hand up. “hold your shitty similes for a second. what did he tell you?”

 

        “actually, i do have some questions. what the hell does ‘being bound’ mean?” karkat visibly untensed.

 

        “it’s basically like platonic soulmates. we were destined to travel together and all the corny shit.”

 

        you snorted. “seriously? that's some kindergartener level bullshit.”

 

        karkat looked a little offended at that for whatever reason, so you shut your mouth about that. “also, that elder dude also told me that you have been keeping something from me? what’s up with that, dude?” 

 

        you guess that was what karkat was dreading because he put his face in his hands and groaned. “i knew he would bring that up, god…” 

 

        you just stared at him expectantly, waiting for him to answer, but he said nothing. 

 

        “ughh, you won't leave me alone about it until i tell you, im guessing.” you stayed quiet, staring at him until he said something. karkat groaned. “okay! fine. its just that there may or may not be a bounty going around for me at the moment? whoop-de-fucking-dee, i’ve got rare, magical mutant blood and its worth a ton. there. and it fucking sucks because i can’t leave my cave without someone else unless its dark because my skin glows,” he rambled, and you could barely make out what he said since he was talking so quickly.

 

        you let out a small ‘huh,’ raising your eyebrows. “i thought it was something really bad. like.. uh oh, oh shit, karkats a murderer, uh oh. but nah, you’re just a kickass edward cullen except you're a shapeshifter and not a vampire.”

 

        “who?” karkat asked, sounding mildly disinterested. he limped over to his pile and grabbed a new shirt slipping it over his head. 

 

        you grabbed the blanket from the ground and absentmindedly folded it. “i… don’t even know,” you said truthfully. “anyways, what now?” you asked again, hoping for more straight forward answers.

 

        “i have to keep my end of the deal with the elder, i guess,” karkat replied, looking out the opening of his cave and looking at who knows what in the bright sky. “yeah, i guess that’s what's next. if everything goes according to plan, we shouldn’t see this cave for a long time.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> get ready... shits about to get real. be ready to meet some new characters soon!
> 
> i love writing karkat because i don't curse so much, so hes just the opposite of me!
> 
> comments and kudos are apprecated! i hope you enjoyed!
> 
> as always, if you want to talk, dm me on instagram or leave me a tell!
> 
> insta: bejeweeled  
> tellonym: bejeweeled

**Author's Note:**

> hi yall!!!
> 
> im planning on actually getting this series done and not stop it because i have been wanting to do this for a while. this first one is a prologue, the rest of the chapters will be much longer!
> 
> please pester me to update. i really want to get this done. 
> 
> anywhosies, thanks for reading!! <3


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